Poppies in the Mud
by Bearstar of SavageClan
Summary: Mudpaw was always below her sister, her parents looked down on her, as did most of the other apprentices. Even after giving up her dream of being a medicine cat apprentice Mudpaw is still treated poorly, so she leaves. Read and review please! Rated T for violence with serious injury.


"Nimblestar. May I speak to you?" Mudpaw mewed poking her head into the leaders den. The brown she-cat looked around nervously, afraid one of her parents or her sister would see her.

"Yes, come in Mudpaw. What is it?" Nimblestar invited the apprentice into his den, he was a very young leader and remembered what it was like to be young.

"I am leaving the clan, I would like to thank you for all you've done for me..." Mudpaw began. "The Clan life has nothing left to offer for me. I have sufficient training and I wil be able to live on my own comfortably in the wild." The apprentice knew she would die or become a kittypet, not a loner when she could barely hunt. "I cannot take the treatment I recieve from the members of this clan. My parents are cruel because I am not as good of a warrior as Brightpaw, and Brightpaw thinks she is better. All the other cata agree with them so I am aware I'm not wanted here. I am no good as a warrior and dragging the clan down with me. Although I don't know how my parents expect me to train well when I'm bleeding from their claws..." Mudpaw trailed off. "Nimblestar, I have said my goodbyes to Deerstep and Applenose as well as to you. I will leave now. Goodbye."

Without another word, the apprentice fled.

Mudpaw ran from the camp. Thin, low hanging branches from the trees that overcrowded the forest whipped her face. The apprentice scrunched up her whiskers and charged on, scaring off any prey that would have been around. Twigs broke and dry leaves crackled beneath the tabby's paws. Yellow eyes stared straight ahead, the apprentice had her mouth open trying to scent the borders. Once she was out, Mudpaw would finally feel safe. Hopefully.  
The strong scent of StreamClan's border hit her. Mudpaw charged forward, even faster than before, hope filling her heart. The second Mudpaw hit the border something changed within her. She felt stronger, more independant, than she had ever felt as an apprentice of the clan. The she-cat did the first thing she thought of, get rid of her clan scent. As the apprentice rolled in the long grass she noticed a single bright red flower, a poppy.

"No one will ever call me Mudpaw of StreamClan again, I shall be known here and now as Poppy. A loner." The young cat mewed aloud.

"Well Poppy, what do you have to say for yourself?" Nimblestar meowed, standing before her.

"I'm not going back." Poppy meowed, fear in her yellow eyes.

"You don't have to return. Why didn't you tell me sooner? And why do you think leaving is the only option."

"Since I was a kit I have always wanted to be medicine cat, I hate being a warrior apprentice with everything inside of me. My parents and all the other apprentices, including Brightpaw, attacked me with words and claws. I could no longer take it. If they knew I had told you then one sunrise I might not have awakened in my nest, or ever again for that matter. I just can't be a Clan cat any longer." Poppy meowed.

"Very well then." Nimblestar stood. "You may come back and train as Deerstep's apprentice if you would like, your family wouldn't bother you."

"No, Finchkit has her heart set on becoming his apprentice when she reaches six moons. I wont take that from her like it was taken from me." Poppy stared at her paws.

"Well, goodbye Poppy. You are always welcome to return to StreamClan if you would like." Nimblestar meowed as he walked back towards the border.

"I wont." The loner meowed firmly.

"I'll send Berrypaw along tomorrow with prey for you, I've seen you hunt." Nimblestar said this and then dissappeared.

"I don't want to see any clan cat ever again... But I suppose I shall take the prey." Poppy muttered to herself. As the apprentice laid on the ground her stomach rumbled, she hadn't eaten before running off and she couldn't wait until tomorrow. As Poppy began sniffing through the grass looking for field mice, she found a dark hole in the ground. Having never smelled this scent before she ventured further in, there was plenty of room for her to move around in so the den obviously belonged to something much bigger than a cat. However, a den was a den, and she doubted whatever this was would mind sharing with her.  
Poppy thought wrong.

The brown tabby awoke to thudding footsteps and sniffing sounds. Instinctively, she backed further into the den, the loner's back paws hit the wall and she realized she was trapped. Poppy was paralyzed with fear as the badger entered the den. The beast moved slowly towards her, a rumbling growl coming from deep within it. Poppy turned her back towards the beast and accepted her fate as it latched its sharp teeth into her flesh and dragged her from the den. The young cat yowled in pain as fangs peirced her skin and a large head shook her vigorously. Poppy cried out for help from Nimblestar and the other clan cats, but she wasn't a clan cat. The Clan wouldn't save a loner, and she was too far to be saved anyway. Poppy closed her eyes and with a yowl she lashed out towards the badger, just momentarily.

"I am Mudpaw!" the apprentice yowled.

It was too late though.

The next sunhigh Berrypaw dragged a carcass into camp. "Mudpaw is dead, a badger killed her." The young tom sighed sadly. As cats, the family and many apprentices, grouped around her body, Nimblestar came forward.

"Step away from her." The leader snarled. "All of you go hunt and train. You don't deserve to sit vigil for her. Not after how you treated her." The clan cats slowly backed away. Deerstep came forward, Finchkit at his heels.

"I will sit with her." The medicine cat meowed.

"Me too!" Finchkit mewed, although she didn't really understand all that was happening.

"The three of us will mourn you Mudpaw, no... Poppypaw. Rest well, in a place where no cat will ever harm you." NImblestar meowed over the body before falling silent.


End file.
